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EXERCISE and TRAINING 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



f am A \ ^ys 

\ t n . | by \ / 

R. J.' LEE, M.A. M.D.Cantab. 

LECTURER ON PATHOLOGY AT THE WESTMINSTER HOSPITAL ETC. 



9-7H 



LONDON 

SMITH, ELDER & CO., 15 WATERLOO PLACE 

1873 



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Pat. Om 9 e Lib. 
Aprii 1&I4. 



PREFACE. 



SINCE the publication a few months ago, in one of 
the weekly journals, of the remarks contained in 
these pages on Exercise and Training, the subject 
has been brought prominently before the medical 
profession in consequence of a discussion which 
took place quite recently at the Clinical Society, 
and w T hich was fully reported in the * British 
Medical Journal.' The results of the experience of 
several eminent physicians clearly stated upon this 
occasion have been sufficient to excite very general 
interest indeed in the whole subject of our athletic 
sports, and will undoubtedly lead to an impartial 
and careful examination into the question of the 
advantages and disadvantages which attach to 
them. Instances w r ere mentioned of the serious 
consequences of violent muscular exertion, or 'over- 



4 PREFACE 

strain/ both where sudden effects were produced by 
it or the symptoms of disease were manifested 
after some lapse of time, and it was particularly 
interesting to observe how fairly and earnestly the 
discussion was supported by the Society. Not 
only were the usual athletic exercises most pro- 
ductive of injury brought under consideration, 
but the inquiry was extended to every kind of 
influence capable of exerting deleterious effects by 
mechanical means on the important organs of the 
body. 

In order to make the following remarks as 
complete and practical as possible, I shall avail 
myself of the facts which were elicited on the 
occasion referred to and the general conclusions 
which may be drawn from them. It will be seen that 
the object in view is not to discourage a reasonable 
indulgence in those valuable and delightful sources 
of pleasure to which we are almost instinctively 
attached, but simply to point out how necessary 
it is to avoid every possibility of suffering from 
incaution or excess. 

R. J. L. 



EXERCISE and TRAINING 



CHAPTER I. 

EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGICALLY CONSIDERED — ITS 
PRACTICAL BENEFITS — THE INJURIES RE- 
SULTING FROM OVER-EXERTION. 

The time is rapidly approaching when the value of 
exercise as one of the most important agents in the 
preservation of health and the prevention of disease 
will be more fully recognised than it is at present 
Various active amusements, which occupy the 
hours of relaxation at our schools and Universities, 
instead of being regarded with doubt or suspicion, 
or looked upon more leniently as innocent pastimes, 
will probably before long obtain their due apprecia- 
tion, and form a part of every system of rational 
education. Without casting any disparagement on 
the attention which for some years has been paid to 



6 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



intellectual culture, one may raise the question 
whether the effects of over-care in that respect have 
not been quite as serious in the injuries they have 
produced as any which have resulted from too 
violent muscular exertion. 

It would, however, deprive those popular amuse- 
ments which demand much activity of the pleasure 
and advantage which may be derived from them 
if they were replaced by any regular gymnastic 
exercise ; but there are certain principles which 
ought to be understood by all who indulge in them 
particularly when they submit to such rules as are 
in force amongst boating men at our Universities 
during the period of training. 

It seems desirable that, instead of seizing upon 
opportunities for discouraging rowing and similar 
amusements, some attempt should be made to 
establish on a firm scientific basis a system of rules 
by which those who have not yet had experience 
may be guided, and the unfortunate accidents 
which sometimes occur to render such amusements 
unpopular may be avoided. 

It will be seen in the course of the following 
remarks that every kind of movement has some 
particular influence on the muscles and organs of 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 7 



the body, and as it makes very little difference 
which is selected for the purpose of illustrating the 
general principles on which exercise is to be regu- 
lated, we may take that which is the most popular 
as well as the most active. 

Mr. Maclaren's work has already prepared the 
way for such a system as we desire to see established, 
and is much to be commended for its simplicity 
and good common sense. Every treatise on rowing 
necessarily includes the subject of training, and 
aims at a scheme or set of rules of universal appli- 
cation ; but there is a good deal to be done before 
we can arrive at general laws where great varieties 
of physical constitution are to be considered. This 
principle of variation it is of the greatest importance 
to recognise if we wish to examine the subject of 
training in a scientific manner ; and if it is fully 
appreciated and observed, we shall arrive at a far 
more satisfactory system than those w T hich simply 
rest on dogmatic opinions. 

To suppose that any injurious effects are pro- 
duced on the constitution of a healthy man by the 
amount of training required for the performance of 
any of the exertions demanded by the sports in 
vogue at our Universities I have no hesitation in 



S EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



asserting is an error. On the contrary, I believe 
that careful training is highly beneficial to health, 
and I think that regular boating exercise is one of 
the most powerful agents with which we are 
acquainted in preventing those serious diseases of 
the lungs which are liable to occur at this period of 
life ; but it happens not unfrequently that men 
1 over-train,' as it is termed, and it ought to be an 
object of scientific enquiry to prevent the occurrence 
of such mistakes. Those who have had much 
experience in rowing will support me in the opinion 
that rarely, if ever, is the actual race a source of 
mischief to a man who has been prudent and 
attentive in his training. With these prelim i~ 
naiy remarks we may enter upon our investiga- 
tion. 

The order in which Mr. Maclaren has taken the 
common agents of health— viz. exercise, diet, sleep, 
air, bathing, and clothing — is natural and con- 
venient, and has been adopted by the earliest autho- 
rities on gymnastics. 

* To the question, What is training, and what is 
it meant to do ? I should answer,' says the author 
referred to, i It is to put the body, with extreme 
and exceptional care, under the influence of all the 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



agents which promote its health and strength, in 
order to enable it to meet extreme and exceptional 
demands upon its energies.' This definition is a fair 
way of introducing the consideration of the agents 
mentioned, 'whether they are to be administered 
under or altered for purposes of training.' As the 
object which we have in view when we commence 
training is an unusual muscular exertion either 
soon or at a more distant period, the subject of 
exercise necessarily demands more attention than 
the other agents which are merely subsidiary to it. 
Let me ask rather close attention on the part of the 
reader to the physiology Of muscular movement, 
for on this depends the whole question of training. 
By the physiology of exercise I mean chiefly the 
mechanical effects which muscular contraction pro- 
duces on the structures of the human body. When 
we make any unusual muscular exertion, we dis- 
cover that if only some one limb or part be 
involved we can support the effort until the power 
of the muscles in that limb or part is exhausted ; 
but if the whole body is engaged in the exertion, 
the respiration may be so much disturbed as to oblige 
us to cease long before muscular power is exhausted. 
There are two conditions necessary for sustaining 



io EXERCISE AND TRAINING 

muscular activity — one which relates to the muscles 
themselves, which we may call local ; the other to 
the organs chiefly of circulation and respiration, 
which we may term general or constitutional. In 
holding out a weight at arm's length we have an 
example of the first kind of muscular exertion ; 
the respiration is not disturbed to any great degree, 
and we can continue the effort until the power of 
the muscles of the arm is exhausted. To what this 
failure is due we shall presently examine. In 
running and rowing we have examples of the 
second class of muscular exercises, and in these, 
although fatigue may be felt in the muscles of the 
legs, the chief distress experienced is in the dis- 
turbance of the respiratory organs. It is evident 
from this that every kind of gymnastic exercise — 
indeed, every movement we make — is accompanied 
by local and general effects ; and we shall see that, 
in estimating the value of any particular kind of 
exercise, we must determine its influence in those 
respects. The development of the muscles has 
usually been regarded as far more important than 
attention to the condition of the constitution ; but 
this is to be attributed to the fact that we can 
estimate by its size the power of a muscle, while the 



THEIR EFFECTS UP OA HEALTH n 

proof of constitutional condition (the evidence of 
which comes out in a race) is not so easily- 
obtained. 

The chief reason for attention to constitutional 
training depends on the fact that the muscles of the 
arms, legs, &c, are not affected in the same way 
as the heart and lungs by over-exertion. Voluntary 
muscles may be developed to twice their size, but 
gradually they will return, when exercise is discon- 
tinued, to their natural dimensions. With the heart 
and lungs it is different, and though they also are 
capable of increase of power, there is a limit which 
it is unsafe to transgress. Most of the injurious 
effects — I may say all — which follow excessive 
muscular exertion show themselves not in the pro- 
duction of disease of the muscles, but in some 
derangement of the organs of circulation and respi- 
ration. 

Every kind of exercise develops certain muscles 
more than others, and differs from other exercises 
in the extent to which it disturbs circulation and 
respiration. Let us enquire, in the first place, into 
the physiological effects produced by local muscular 
contraction. The fatigue experienced in holding 
out a weight at arm's length, or in any other kind 



12 EXERCISE AND TRAINING 

of continued muscular effort, arises from the pressure 
exerted by the muscular tissue on the blood vessels 
which it contains. These vessels consist of arteries 
which supply the tissue with fresh blood, and of 
veins which carry the blood away in a state of 
impurity. The effect of pressure upon these vessels 
is, in the case of the arteries, to diminish or arrest 
the supply of blood ; in the case of the veins, to 
accelerate its departure ; and as the muscles depend 
upon arterial blood for their vitality, it is evident 
that sustained pressure will deprive them of their 
power. When the muscular contractions are of 
short duration, and alternate with periods of relax- 
ation, as happens in rowing, there is no difficulty in 
continuing the exercise for a considerable period. 
The fatigue which arises from disturbance in respi- 
ration depends on a change in the quantity of blood 
in the lungs, heart, and large blood vessels. This 
takes place when many muscles are engaged in the 
exercise, and consequently a large quantity of 
arterial blood is prevented from passing into the 
muscular tissue, while another similar quantity of 
venous blood is expelled from it into the large veins 
connected more or less directly with the heart. 
In this manner muscular contraction is related to 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



the organs of circulation. Now beyond a certain 
point the heart and blood vessels are unable to 
support distension, and as the lungs are the organs 
which are most closely connected with the heart, it 
follows that such a disturbance as we have described 
soon affects their vessels likewise, and produces an 
arrest in the flow of blood through the tissue of the 
lungs. From these causes arise that distress 
commonly known as ' loss of wind.' 

The problem of training to a great extent 
resolves itself into one of hydraulics ; it is only 
complicated by the remarkable property which is 
possessed by the various parts of the human system 
of adapting themselves gradually to altered condi- 
tions. It is this fact which explains how the lungs, 
heart, and vessels are enabled to support consider- 
able disturbing influences without producing dis- 
comfort or being exposed to subsequent injurious 
effects. 

That the organs in one person differ from those 
in another in this power of accommodation there is 
no reason to doubt ; and it is more than probable 
that from peculiarities in this respect the great diffi- 
culty is experienced of drawing up any one system 
of rules for training applicable to all men alike. 



H EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



For the sake of those of my readers who may wish 
to pursue in greater detail the line of reasoning we 
have been following, I shall introduce some valuable 
remarks by a writer with whom I was personally 
acquainted, and to whom I feel indebted for assis- 
tance in the study of the phenomena connected 
with training. This author employed the terms 
' muscido-cardiac' to designate the above-mentioned 
effect of muscular contraction on the vessels and 
heart ; while he applied the term ' pulmo -cardiac ' 
to the property possessed by the lungs of accom- 
modating themselves to the distention of the heart 
and vessels. 'These observations,' says Mr. Wardrop, 
' naturally lead us to enquire by what means can a 
person attain the power of regulating the respiratory 
and circulating organs, so as to be able to continue 
making great muscular exertions, until his muscular 
energy is exhausted, or in what consists the art 
of training ? This subject has never sufficiently 
claimed the attention of physiologists, and no one, 
as far as I know, except the ingenious Mr. Bell, 
ever seems to have made even allusion to it, or to 
have considered whether any change takes place in 
the physical condition of the thoracic viscera of 
those who have been trained to perform feats of 
strength. 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



' Do we not see that boxers and all the tribe of 
athletics cannot ever make those exertions unpre- 
pared ? And what is the course of " training " but 
a spare diet of generous food, with regular exercise, 
and gradual exertions ; till at last the two great 
functions of respiration and circulation accompany- 
ing each other are brought to the highest pitch, 
and the man becomes capable of exertions before 
impossible or dangerous, now familiar or easy to 
him ? 

' A careful consideration of the varied functions 
of respiration and circulation, along with some 
points but lately discovered in the anatomy of the 
respiratory apparatus will, I am persuaded, enable 
us to give a satisfactory elucidation of the changes 
which take place in training, and will also lead to a 
satisfactory explanation of several symptoms in the 
diseases of the thoracic viscera which have hitherto 
evaded pathological research. 

i If we attentively examine the nature of training, 
or putting a person " in wind," we shall find that it 
consists in so regulating the respirations during 
muscular exertions, that any pulmo-cardiac con- 
gestion is prevented ; and this is effected by per- 
mitting the lungs to receive only such quantities of 



iC 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



blood during each inspiration as will not destroy 
the proper adjustment between the respiratory and 
circulating organs, whilst at the same time a 
quantity of air is inspired sufficient for the arteriali- 
sation of the blood. The muscular movements are 
thus allowed to proceed until the energy of the 
muscles becomes exhausted ; for, as I have 
already mentioned, if pulmo-cardiac congestion 
goes beyond certain limits during any muscular 
exertion, the person becomes exhausted, not from 
the muscles being fatigued, but from the cavities 
of the heart and pulmonary vessels becoming so 
loaded with blood as to interrupt respiration. 

' That training consists in a person acquiring a 
certain control over the respiratory organs, and 
that one of its essential conditions is to limit the 
inspirations, can be shown by examining the mode 
in which respiration is performed by those who are 
properly trained for athletic purposes. 

' It may be remarked that those who are best 
trained for performing feats of strength require 
great care and nicety in order to adjust the respi- 
ratory organs, before making any muscular exertion. 
The trained dancer commences his performance by 
increasing the movements of the body in a very 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



gradual manner, and thus establishes an equilibrium 
between the respiration and circulation, so that 
afterwards he can perform the most rapid move- 
ments, and continue the exertions until his 
muscular energy is exhausted, without suffering 
any interruption from the respiratory organs. 

' It is the same with the prize-fighter, for whom, 
to retain his great physical powers, it is necessary 
that the muscular exertions which he is about to 
perform be at first made only in a very moderate 
degree ; and if, from passion or great excitement, 
he is induced to make too violent an effort at the 
commencement of a fight, the necessary adjustment 
in respiration is destroyed, his breathing becomes 
laborious, and he cannot. avoid failing in his enter- 
prise. 

' The pernicious effects of violent exercise on the 
circulation, as well as the mode of avoiding them, 
are well understood by those who professedly train 
persons for gymnastic exercises, and hence it is by 
them considered a great nicety in the process of 
training never to allow pulmo-cardiac congestion to 
be carried so far as to render the thoracic viscera 
unable to recover, without difficulty, whenever the 
muscular exertions which produce the congestion 

B 



1 8 EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



have ceased, all surplus blood from the pulmonary 
vessels. For when attention has not been paid to 
this circumstance, and when, from an over disten- 
sion of the air cells, the congestion has exceeded 
certain limits, an embarrassment in breathing con- 
tinues, which, in some instances, prevents the person 
from following such exercises even throughout the 
remainder of his life/ 

The views that Mr. Wardrop entertained on 
training were not entirely theoretical, and it may be 
interesting to those who remember his name to be 
informed that he put them into practice with highly 
satisfactory results ; not indeed in training men 
but horses. One of the reasons why I have made 
so long an extract from his work is that I am 
anxious the attention of medical men should be 
directed to the subject of exercise, and its value as 
a therapeutic agent. We may now apply these 
theories to the exercise of rowing. We may con- 
sider how the musculo-cardiac and pulmo-cardiac 
functions are influenced by the movements of the 
oarsmen ; and how they are altered by strokes of 
various characters ; and as we prosecute these 
enquiries there will present themselves to our notice 
many other details from which satisfactory answers 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 19 

will be obtained to some interesting questions often 
raised amongst boating men. 

It is at the commencement of the stroke that the 
greatest strain is made on the muscular and circu- 
lating systems. All the power which the body is 
capable of exerting is brought to bear upon the 
blade of the oar. The position of the body is un- 
favourable for respiratory movements, and in pro- 
portion as the reach is extended so is the tension 
on the muscles increased. When the vertical 
position is attained the weight of the body is brought 
in to increase the pressure on the blade, or, at least, 
to supply the muscular force which the altered posi- 
tion has diminished. While the oar is at right 
angles with the boat, the stroke is completed by the 
flexor muscles of the arms, and, to assist in this 
action, the upper part of the chest and the shoulders 
are steadily fixed till the oar is clear of the water. 
This is a very imperfect description of the sequence 
of muscular actions during the stroke ; but it is 
sufficient to distinguish two chief periods, one of 
greatest exertion, the other of greatest repose ; the 
first at the commencement of the stroke, the latter 
at the end of it, that is before the forward move- 
ment for the following stroke begins. These periods 

b 2 



20 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



are more perceptible in some styles of rowing than 
in others ; indeed, the style depends very much on 
the necessity that is experienced For repose at some 
particular moment, this bearing relation to the mode 
of distribution and amount of force previously 
expended. Where a crew are impressed with the 
advantage of catching the water at the beginning 
of each stroke it may be observed that it is diffi- 
cult for them to avoid, hanging either at the finish 
of that stroke or when well forward for the follow- 
ing one ; while a regular expenditure of force 
through the whole stroke diminishes the periods of 
repose, or at least divides the time between the 
finish and the commencement, so as to produce the 
effect of uninterrupted motion. It is simply to point 
out the cause of what are considered faults in row- 
ing that I have referred to style, so that the correc- 
tion of such faults may be conducted on scientific 
principles. The mode of distribution of force may 
be still left an open question for rowing authorities 
to decide. One of the chief objects of training is 
undoubtedly to regulate the powers of the circula- 
ting and respiratory organs, so as to diminish as 
much as possible the necessity for periods of repose, 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



and allow regularity of movement and equality of 
distribution of force. 

In the remarks of Mr. Wardrop the necessity has 
been clearly pointed out of carefully watching lest 
the heart and lungs be oppressed by too hurried 
movements. This cannot be too strongly insisted 
upon, for the reason that the organs do not recover 
themselves very readily. For the sake of illustration, 
we may compare the passage of the elements of the 
blood through the minute vessels of the lungs to 
the exit of a crowd of persons from a large building. 
If the movement, in either case, be hurried by force 
beyond a certain point, it is arrested by the acci- 
dents which occur to the living particles, the vitality 
of which gives a character to the current very dif- 
ferent from that of simple fluids. 

The difficulty of training depends, as we have 
remarked, on individual peculiarities in respect to 
the musculo-cardiac and pulmo-cardiac functions. 
If the heart and lungs accommodate themselves 
readily to muscular contractions under ordinary 
circumstances, that is to say, if a man has ' good 
wind/ we shall probably find that the muscular 
system may advantageously be more fully deve- 
loped ; while a naturally well-developed muscular 



22 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



system will require attention to the organs of 
respiration and circulation. The greater number 
of men have both systems fairly well developed, 
so that in their case the object should be to increase 
their powers simultaneously. 

I am decidedly of opinion that the training for 
first boat races is by no means so severe as to over- 
tax the powers of the majority of rowing men, and 
I am persuaded that they have nothing to fear if 
they commence training with a feeling in their own 
minds, the result of general experience of their 
own powers, that they can submit to it. If they 
have any doubts on the question, and allow them- 
selves to be influenced too much by ambition, they 
will derive but little pleasure from making the 
experiment ; and if they escape a break-down 
during training they will have the mortification of 
knowing that their boat is not improved by their 
presence in it 

The object, then, in training, is to supply 
strength where there is weakness ; not to develop 
any particular part of the system at the expense of 
the rest, but to oppose the tendency of any one par- 
ticular kind of exercise, to produce, by constant 
indulgence in it, that very result At first it would 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



appear paradoxical to assert that constant and ex- 
tensive practice in rowing is the worst preparation 
for a race. Such, however, is the fact, and it is 
equally true of every kind of exercise, mental and 
bodily, as it is of rowing. It must be borne in mind 
that the object of training is not to afford proficiency 
in any particular kind of exercise, but to bring those 
important organs and muscles which are less di- 
rectly engaged in the ordinary course of the exer- 
cise into such a condition as to enable them to sup- 
port an unusual effort or strain such as they are 
quite unaccustomed to. Thus we see the import- 
ance of variation in exercise during training. 
In rowing, however, we have capabilities of 
exercising at one time the muscular system, at 
another the respiratory organs, by altering the speed 
so that a long, slow stroke continued for some dis- 
tance has the effect of increasing muscular power 
with little disturbance of the respiration, while a 
quick stroke increases the strain upon the heart and 
lungs. Without resorting to running as a part of 
a system in training, it is quite possible to obtain 
from rowing alone all the advantages, as far as the 
improvement of the respiratory organs is concerned, 
which any other exercise can bestow. With regard 



24 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



to walking and running as auxiliaries to training, 
we may allow that they are useful so far as they 
tend to develop the muscles of the legs, and they 
may, therefore, be recommended to those who find 
that they suffer from weakness in the lower limbs 
during rowing ; but as means to improve respira- 
tory power they are inferior to rowing. Mr. 
Maclaren has properly pointed out the fact that 
constant slow rowing produces no effect on the 
development of the thorax ; and he has in all pro- 
bability good reasons for asserting that he ' could 
point to men who have had rowing for their exclu- 
sive exercise since they came to the University — 
men endowed with an organisation capable of the 
finest development — whose chests have been almost 
stationary for years — the years during which they 
should have ma(3e the greatest advancement — who 
have now in fact the same developments in this 
region which they brought from school/ 

While on the subject of running, the opportunity 
offers itself of inquiring into the cause of the peculiar 
dislike which some men have to that part of train- 
ing. There must be some reason for the fact that 
while it is no effort for one man to trot over a mile 
at a steady pace, and finish up with a spurt, another 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



has the greatest disinclination — indeed, is not equal 
to perform half the distance. 

Many good oars suffer from the feeling to which 
I allude, and., as far as whose experience goes, it is 
doubtful whether they are benefited by the morn- 
ing run or not. My own opinion on the matter is 
this : — Where the constitution is good, and there is 
no disinclination on the part of a man to run his 
mile before breakfast, there is no objection to his 
doing so; and, for some reasons, a man who can make 
the exertion easily is to be preferred to one who 
cannot, as it is undoubtedly an evidence of superior 
physical power, both of the muscular and respira- 
tory systems. In the case, however, of men who 
feel an aversion to the morning run, the muscles of 
the legs may be developed by such games as fives 
or rackets, while the muscles of the thorax may be 
invigorated by half an hour in the gymnasium ; and 
this latter advantage running does not effect. With 
regard, moreover, to any violent exertion before the 
first meal of the day, there can be no doubt that a 
large number of men are only injured by attempt- 
ing it. A short walk after morning chapel and 
before breakfast, and an hour's sharp practice in 
the fives court before the afternoon's row (some 



26 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



time between 1 1 and I o'clock), will be found suffi- 
cient for most constitutions ; and to give especial 
development to the muscles of the thorax, a pair of 
dumb bells, a cross-bar, or, better than either, ten 
minutes of steady swimming, will be found a valu- 
able addition to the particular exercise of rowing. 
A captain may use the test of the morning run to 
ascertain the constitutional character of his crew, 
and those who cannot run should be induced to 
walk, while those who can and will run should not 
content themselves with merely running and rowing, 
but should carry on such other (not excessive) 
exercises as are named above, and are calculated to 
give vigour to the frame generally and the thorax 
in particular. In no case is it advisable that 
much exercise should be undergone before 
breakfast. 

To these general remarks on the subject of 
exercise in training I have nothing to add beyond 
this, that, every now and then, rest is better than 
movement, and the system will feel invigorated 
by a day of relaxation, and be decidedly benefited 
by it. 

We have been considering thus far only one 
particular species of exercise, and before dismissing 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 27 



the subject it will be proper to take a more general 
view of the effects of different kinds of muscular 
exertion on the system and their influence upon 
health. There is no doubt but that the importance 
of this agent at later periods of life is perhaps 
greater than in early years, and it becomes a matter 
of considerable difficulty to those who have indulged 
regularly in rowing to find a substitute for it on 
leaving the University. The system pursued in 
ancient times provided facilities which we don't 
enjoy in our great cities to the extent that is 
desirable, and almost every one engaged for many 
hours during the day in professional or business 
occupations is fully aware of the effects produced 
by this want. As we advance in life it is found 
more and more necessary to refrain from such exer- 
tions as increase too much the action of the heart 
and strain the organs of respiration. For this rea- 
son the most distinguished physicians have regarded 
no exercise as superior to that of riding, which in the 
opinion of the celebrated Sydenham was a cure for 
many maladies. It may be observed that among the 
Greeks the gymnasia were not originally intended 
for the training of athletes, that is, of those who 
made the agonistic and athletic art their profession. 



28 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



Those who founded them had a far nobler end in 
view than that. Well aware of the advantages of 
physical power, the degree to which it contributes 
to the prosperity and supremacy of a nation, they 
took care to develope and foster a system which 
produced a high standard of individual mus- 
cularity. The advantages derived from riding 
will be clearly understood if we reflect upon 
the slight degree of tension of the muscles of the 
body, with the exception of those inside the thigh, 
which is required for preserving a seat on horseback, 
and we may place in order the various kinds of 
exercise with which we are acquainted according as 
they produce greater muscular tension, or, in a 
mechanical point of view, as they require the expen- 
diture of a greater amount of force. Calculations 
recently made allow those much interested in the 
subject to estimate with considerable exactness the 
amount of force exerted in rowing and walking as 
compared with one another ; but as these calcula- 
tions are not practically applicable to the human 
machine, owing to its complexity, I shall not detain 
the reader with an examination of them. 

It remains for us to make some inquiry into 
the allegation that the exercises at our public 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 29 

schools and Universities are pushed too far. In the 
discussion at the Clinical Society, various instances 
were mentioned of serious injury to the heart from 
overstrain. In the case of young soldiers, an 
irregularity of the heart might be produced by 
tight clothing and accoutrements, and at one of 
our large public schools it was observed that 
excessive exertion, particularly in those to some 
degree fatigued by mental labour, was very liable 
to occasion a similar disturbance. There is no 
doubt, with this evidence before us, which was 
further supported by instances of irreparable 
mischief, we must admit the necessity of enquiring 
into the particular manner in which these injuries 
are produced, so that the causes which occasion 
them may be as far as possible diminished ; or 
where there is the least danger, decided prohibition 
may prevent it. For some years past, the medical 
profession has hardly seen its way in dealing with 
this difficulty ; at least, I consider such attempts as 
have been occasionally made to interfere with the 
sports of our schools and Universities the very 
worst plan to pursue under the circumstances. It 
appeared to me desirable to ascertain, in the first 
place, the exact nature of the diseases which may be 



3° 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



produced by excessive exertion, and of course this 
could only be done by watching the cases of those 
who were suffering. 

In this inquiry, I was fortunate in meeting 
with several instances of professional athletes, par- 
ticularly pedestrians, who were admitted into some 
of our large hospitals, and, sad to say, at an early 
age paid the dearest penalty for their want of 
prudence. It became apparent that there are two 
distinct forms of disease which over-exercise occa- 
sions. The most serious and most striking is the 
sudden attack of collapse, fainting, and pain in the 
heart, which occurs at the very height of the strain. 

Let me give an example of this which came 
under my notice only a few days ago : — A man 
twenty-three years of age stated to me that he was 
suffering from palpitation of the heart, and that it 
had been impossible for him to do anything for 
more than a year. The slightest exertion — for 
instance, simply going up-stairs — occasioned great 
distress, and even in walking he was obliged to 
move very slowly and regularly. The whole of this 
condition followed a two hundred yards' race, in 
which he had suddenly been seized, while running 
at full speed, with such intense pain in the heart 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 31 



and faintness that he fell almost insensible. From 
that time he had been under various kinds of 
treatment, but had never recovered. The further 
details of the case will be published elsewhere. 

Such is the common form which the disease of 
the heart assumes, and which is to be referred to 
an injury of its valves, or more commonly, to violent 
separation of the muscular fibres of the walls of 
the cavities of the heart. The other form is the 
result of long-continued exercise ; and though both 
these diseases are essentially characterised by 
simple hypertrophy of the heart, the causes are 
different. 

Later in life not only the heart is affected but 
the arteries as well, and what is termed atheroma, 
or degeneration of the walls of the vessels, is a 
common disease. In the cases, however, which I 
have examined of immense hypertrophy of the 
heart in professional pedestrians, that condition 
was not often present. And I am inclined to agree 
with my friend Dr. Reginald Thompson, who 
was a distinguished oarsman at Cambridge, 
in the explanation that he gives of the origin 
of the disease which he has called distrain 
of the heart. For practical purposes it is 



3~ 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



sufficient to . know that a sudden strain on the 
heart, particularly if the person is not in trainings— 
and here the great advantages of training are 
apparent — may be the cause of fatal disease. The 
loss of blood from the lungs which may occur is 
the natural relief to the state of tension. There is 
also the important fact to be well acquainted with, 
that long-continued muscular exertion, though it 
may be only in making steady Alpine ascents or 
walking over the moors, will, if pursued too 
assiduously, be productive of disease of the heart. 
In daily life we may be required at any moment to 
make an exertion which, if we are unprepared for, 
may be injurious, not indeed to the same extent as 
in the cases we have been considering, but quite 
sufficient to produce discomfort. I would con- 
clude this chapter, therefore, with the advice that 
every man should keep himself in such health as to 
be prepared to bear the strains of ordinary life with 
indifference; and though he may not care to be 
an athlete, he will perceive the salutary object 
which athletes have in view in training. 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



33 



CHAPTER II. 

DIET— SLEEP — AIR— BATHING—CLOTHING— MODE 
OF TRAINING— MEDICAL TREATMENT, 

On the vexed question of diet I have but little 
to say, not because the subject is simple in its prin- 
ciples or unimportant in its details, but because it is 
far more easy to dictate to the stomach than to make 
it obey. It may be asked by the reader whether 
the results of careful chemical examinations of 
different kinds of food cannot be applied with 
advantage to the subject of diet in training. There 
is no doubt that they may be useful for general 
purposes, but I have not found that they meet the 
requirements of individual peculiarities of constitu- 
tion. In making use of the results of chemical 
analysis in the choice of any kind of diet, it is 
absolutely necessary to determine the value of any 
particular article by direct experiment. To choose 
what is best for the nourishment of any individual, 

C 



34 EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



and what is most easily assimilated, is impossible 
without individual observation. If I ventured 
upon any remark it would be this, that, within the 
limits of sense, the sensations of each indi- 
vidual, in regard to any particular kind of food, 
are a better guide than the dogmatic injunctions of 
others. The best plan would be to determine what 
are innocent kinds of food, and allow considerable 
liberty in choice within this limit both as to quan- 
tity and character. The ordinary kinds of meat, 
fish, and vegetables, cooked plainly but as artisti- 
cally as possible, may all be permitted, while a cer- 
tain amount of fresh fruit will do no one any harm. 
It will be the best plan, however, to have some 
system to follow, one w r hich will be sufficiently 
general to suit the majority of rowing men and 
exact enough for all practical purposes. In a note 
appended to these remarks, the reader will find 
such a system as appears to me, after careful consi- 
deration, to answer these requisitions. The most 
important question to consider is the value and 
necessity of wine and other stimulants or additions. 
There is but little probability of excess being com- 
mitted in good simple food, or in fluids such as 
milk and water. These may be freely indulged in. 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



But in the matter of wine, the time of year, the 
atmosphere of the place, and the constitution of the 
individual, must all be considered. The fluids of 
the body, owing to the effect of muscular contrac- 
tion on the blood vessels, as described above, are 
liable to considerable variations in quantity. The 
chief loss in weight observable at the commence- 
ment of training is due to diminution in the quan- 
tity of blood, and probably to an alteration in its 
character as well ; and it is by these means that the 
blood vessels are relieved of the tension that would 
otherwise be caused by muscular contraction. It 
is, of course, by perspiration that this is effected, 
and it is difficult for any but a student of physiology 
to form an adequate conception of the power 
possessed by the skin, that is, by its minute blood 
vessels and capillaries, of accommodating themselves 
to the pressure resulting from over distension of the 
deeper arteries and veins. 

As an example of the loss which may be occa- 
sioned by suddenly commencing training, I re- 
member that a College friend, who was requested 
to take an oar, some years ago, in the Cambridge 
University boat, shortly before it came up to 

c 2 



5 6 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



Putney, informed me that he lost a stone weight m 
two days— seven pounds each day. 

We ought to endeavour, therefore, to choose 
food and fluids which are known to improve the 
condition of the blood, if there is any appearance of 
weakness and loss of colour in training. 

I have considered the advantage of introducing 
tables of the nutritious elements of different kinds; 
of food at the conclusion of these remarks, but am 
convinced that, interesting as they may be to the 
physiologist or physician, to the general reader they 
would really be of but little practical use, and this 
for the reason that we meet with such a variation 
in constitutional conditions as to render it impos- 
sible to draw up an exact code of rules. 

Though beef, mutton, beer, water, and tea may 
be very excellent things in their way, and the best 
to be limited to if they agree well with one's physi- 
cal peculiarities, yet now and then most valuable 
assistance may be obtained for the improvement of 
the system by a certain quantity of alcoholic stimu- 
lant, such as port wine or half a pint of dry cham- 
pagne. Let not the reader imagine that this would 
ever be requisite in a more bracing climate than 
that of Cambridge or Oxford. My remarks on this 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 37 



point are intended for adoption only at the Univer- 
sities, and they are addressed to those alone who 
find that training brings them down in weight and 
energy so much as to make the process quite dis- 
agreeable., There is but little necessity to watch 
some members of a crew, for their looks are suffi- 
cient evidence of robust health ; but where that 
condition known as over training threatens to come 
on, rest and port wine will do wonders. At dinner- 
time I would recommend that small eaters should 
be allowed a light wine, such as hock or claret, 
instead of been The training table will be much 
improved by attention to such details, .and the 
monotony of training, which produces in some men 
a dislike of food, will be greatly relieved. Under 
all circumstances^, if wine is taken at all, it is better 
that it should be taken at meal-times. In cold 
weather the food and fluids may generally be more 
stimulating than in the summer. 

If we now take the other points which are to 
be attended to in training, viz., sleep, air, bathing, 
and clothing, and examine their physiological 
action on the body under ordinary circumstances, 
it will not be difficult to decide upon the extent to 
which they must be modified for training purposes. 



3& EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



It is important to distinguish between sleep and 
rest, for it is one thing to lie in bed for seven hours 
and sleep calmly and uninterruptedly, and another 
thing if slumber is disturbed, and a certain amount 
of rest is substituted for sleep. It should be a rule 
that no attempt should ever be made to wake a 
man in training at any fixed hour. The duration 
of sleep must be left entirely to the demands of 
the system, and should not be interrupted, however 
long it may continue. Whether the number of 
hours of sleep should be six y seven, or eight, is not 
the question for us to decide. If the captain of a 
boat can secure seven hours" sound sleep for each 
of his crew, or even six hours, he may feel well 
satisfied. The real difficulty experienced in training 
is in obtaining true sleep. Whether rest will com- 
pensate for sleep or not is a different question, and 
a very important one to consider. Experience 
teaches us that digestion is one of the vital processes 
that is not effected during sleep as it is when the 
body is simply in repose, while exercise interferes 
with, if it does not entirely arrest it. We may there- 
fore regard rest as the period when the assimilation 
of food goes on most satisfactorily, and so far a 
certain amount of rest is necessary for that process. 



7 HEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



The reparation of the tissues resembles very closely 
the process of respiration in this respect, that it 
continues more or less constantly during the whole 
twenty-four hours, more actively, perhaps, at one 
time than another, but not like digestion in a 
periodic manner. The influence of sleep and rest 
may be better ascertained by observing the effects 
that result from the interruption or diminution of 
them, both when exercise is increased and when it 
is diminished. Those who have sat for many hours 
in the sick room are well acquainted with the 
feeling produced simply by want of sleep, and may 
compare it with the different sensation which is 
experienced during long-sustained muscular exer- 
cise, as, for instance, during high mountain ascents. 
In the former case the very want of exercise seems 
to preclude satisfactory sleep, while in the latter it 
is difficult to oppose the strong desire to yield to 
it. It would appear from this that rest to a certain 
extent must be looked upon as opposed to sleep ; 
at all events, in training we must not regard it as 
an efficient substitute for sleep. 

When seven hours is recommended as the limit 
of time to be spent in bed, it is assumed that sleep 
is continuous during the whole of the time. If 



4° 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



only five or six out of the seven hours are thus 
spent, it will be better to resort to exercise to 
induce sleep than to prolong the hours of rest. So 
far the rule of seven hours is to be recommended ; 
for, supposing that it is impossible to obtain more 
than five hours' sleep on one night, it is almost cer- 
tain that the deficiency will be made up the night 
following. There is a wide difference, however, in 
the readiness with which some can compose them- 
selves for sleep when compared with others, or can 
sustain the want of it. Some, again, are of such a 
disposition of mind as to be influenced easily by 
exciting causes, which seriously interfere with sound 
repose and sleep. By observing regularity in the 
time of retiring to bed and leaving it in the morn- 
ing, the habit may be induced of sleeping soundly 
enough during the seven hours for all requirements ; 
but till this habit is induced it will be wise to com- 
pensate for a short sleep one night by retiring an 
hour or two earlier the following night, particularly 
if the disturbance occurs during the racing week, 
A captain will do well to urge on the attention of 
his crew the desirability of leaving bed at a certain 
fixed hour in the morning while in training. If any 
man likes to go to bed early it may be permitted 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 41 



him to do so, or if he likes to rise earlier than the 
fixed time no objection should be made. The best 
general plan to pursue is to discourage any indul- 
gence in rest in bed, unless in sleep, and to advise 
each man to get up as soon as he wakes, whether 
he has had seven hours' sleep or not, It will 
be better if fatigue is felt to rest during the day 
rather than during the proper hours of sleep. 

On the subject of air little need be said, The 
necessity of ventilation in the bedroom is rightly 
insisted upon by Mr. Maclaren, and the plan of 
leaving the window open at all seasons is decidedly 
to be recommended. 

As I have already referred to the condition pro- 
duced by over-training, in the same way that an 
extra allowance of stimulant is beneficial, I would 
advise a change of air for a day or two from the 
University to the sea coast, or at least to a more 
bracing atmosphere. A visit to the Newmarket 
hills would afford sufficient change probably for 
Cambridge men, but the sea air is undoubtedly to 
be preferred. It may be observed, however, that 
rowing men suffer much less than others from the 
peculiarly depressing influence of the atmosphere 
which characterises both Universities, and probably 



42 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



this results from the regularity with which exercise of 
some kind is pursued. Those who have resided 
for some years in the neighbourhood of Oxford and 
Cambridge not only are free from the inconvenience 
of suffering from the influence of the atmosphere 
but are disagreeably affected by more bracing cli- 
mates. 

It is unnecessary to make any general remarks 
on the beneficial effects of bathing, as the cold bath 
has become essential to the comfort of most men 
at the Universities, and every one has some expe- 
rience of its use It will be interesting, neverthe- 
less, to examine the physiological action which is 
produced by the application of water at different 
temperatures to the surface of the body, and this 
for the reason that it produces different effects on 
different individuals. Occasionally, though rarely, 
we meet with those who are unable to take a bath 
regularly without suffering at times from the in- 
fluence of cold for an hour or more after it, while 
others pursue, with a certain sense of satisfaction, 
the plan of bathing all the year round in water 
fresh from the spring, and therefore much colder in - 
winter than in summer. 

The physiological effect of the cold bath is to 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



produce a sudden contraction of the minute blood 
vessels of the skin ; a similar condition in fact, to 
that which muscular contraction produces on the 
vessels of muscular tissue. The property which the 
cutaneous vessels possess of accommodating them- 
selves to any distension of the deeper vessels, 
to which I have already alluded, must be considered 
when we desire to develop it as an auxiliary in 
training. There can be no doubt that in the cold 
bath and the hot bath we are provided with the 
best means of regulating the amount of blood in 
the cutaneous system of vessels. When the latter 
is used, there follows relief to the larger and deeper 
vessels, and when the former the opposite condition 
is the result. After active exercise, the cutaneous 
vessels are unusually distended with blood, and, in 
order to restore equilibrium, a cold bath or douche 
may be used with propriety. It is quite possible, 
however, to carry to excess the use of the cold bath 
early in the morning, for cutaneous distension is not 
by any means a consequence of sleep, and to apply 
to the skin water uncomfortably cold is to commit 
the same kind of fault as attempting to make active 
muscular efforts early in the morning. Let me re- 
commend the bath with this limitation : that in 



44 EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



summer and winter the temperature shall be pre- 
served the same, and that, under no circumstances, 
shall the water in winter be used colder than in 
summer. The consideration of the effect of the 
cold bath in producing what is termed a shock 
would necessitate the introduction of some reference 
to the nervous system, which I have hitherto pur- 
posely kept out of view, as it has appeared desirable 
to limit our inquiry as much as possible to changes 
in the system arising from mechanical causes ; and 
as there is no decided benefit, as far as I can judge, 
from using cold water, with the view of producing 
such a shock as is referred to, I shall not enter into 
that part of the question. There can be no doubt 
that the contracting effect of cold on the sur- 
face vessels must produce a considerable change 
in the quantity of blood in the heart and lungs ; in 
fact, a sudden congestion. As it is not our object 
in training to prepare those organs for any extremely 
sudden change of this kind, we may inquire whether 
the chief benefit of the bath may not arise from its 
effect on the minute vessels in strengthening their 
contractile power, popularly known as giving tone 
to them, so that a strain during violent exertion 
may be better sustained. For practical purposes I 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



would advise that the cold bath be used very soon 
after rowing, while the body is warm and perspir- 
ing. In the early morning the tepid bath should 
be used if the cold bath is disagreeable or produces 
a chill not quickly recovered from. It would be 
desirable for every boat-house to be supplied with 
greater facilities than were enjoyed when I was at 
Cambridge of obtaining a cold douche. It would 
be quite easy to arrange a row of douche baths, so 
that a shower of water might be allowed to fall on 
the body immediately after getting out of the boat ; 
and I would suggest that, instead of running home 
in the boating clothes, the dress should be changed 
in the boat-house. In particular cases I should 
recommend in the morning that a warm bath be 
taken on leaving bed, the skin well rubbed, and 
that a cold douche be taken immediately after- 
wards. This plan will be found superior to any 
other. Let me say one word on the use of the cold 
bath. It is my belief that the habit of bathing winter 
and summer in a running stream, or in water of low 
temperature is highly injurious, and that, instead of 
preserving the health for a number of years, it will 
induce premature disease of, the heart and arteries, 



46 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



even in those of the strongest constitutions. With 
regard to the Turkish bath, I shall say nothing, as 
all the effect obtained from it I believe may be 
gained by muscular exercise, which is sufficient in 
itself to develop those functions of the skin which 
are stimulated by the Turkish bath. The variable 
effects of the cold bath on different individuals 
depend on the functional activity of the vascular 
system, that is, on the readiness with which the 
vessels accommodate themselves to changes in the 
quantity of fluid they contain and return to their 
normal degree of distension. 

The usual boating dress is admirably suited in 
every way for the freedom of movement which is 
required in rowing. The chief point demanding 
attention is the prevention of cold soon after the 
exercise, and, though a thick pilot coat is com- 
monly used, it is so important a part of boating 
dress that I may be allowed to advise that no one 
should be without it. 

If the object of the rather discursive remarks 
which I have made had been to introduce an entirely 
new system of training, or if the subject had not 
already received some attention, it would have been 
incumbent on me to give exact directions instead 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



47 



of attempting to point out what appear to be some 
of the chief deficiencies in other systems. 

On carefully examining the systems of instruc- 
tions which are appended to Mr. Maclaren's work, 
it is apparent that each has merits of its own, and 
that it is less necessary to direct the attention of 
readers to those particulars which are the same 
in each system than to examine the details in which 
they differ. I would prefer, however, to leaye the 
reader to do this for himself, as experience will 
assist him in arriving at conclusions best suited to 
his individual requirements. 

For general purposes I would recommend the 
system of the late H.Clasper,as it is more simple than 
the others quoted by Mr.Maclaren,and appears to be 
founded upon personal observation. Sufficient regard 
has not been paid in any of these regulations to 
the prevention or amelioration of that uncomfort- 
able condition which is known as over-training. 
The occurrence of boils alone, to which rowing men 
are very subject, is a source of much disturbance of 
the system, interfering with the exercise itself, and 
producing constitutional effects, as well as more or 
less local pain. There are also liabilities to serious 
inconvenience from inflammation of the tissues of 



48 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



the palms of the hands, so painful sometimes as to 
prevent sleep, and occasionally to require surgical 
relief. The friction of the handle of the oar, com- 
bined with the pressure of the grasp, might occa- 
sion inflammation in the deep tendinous and fibrous 
structures of the hands in a person in robust health, 
but there is no doubt that the depressing influence 
of training on some constitutions very much in- 
creases the tendency to this occurrence. 

It is, therefore, highly important that whenever 
a man in training begins to suffer from loss of 
appetite and healthy looks, and a feeling of lassitude 
which neither sleep nor rest seems to remove, some 
active measures should be taken to restore the con- 
dition of the system. To continue training under 
such circumstances is injudicious in every way, and 
will defeat the end in view. I would strongly re- 
commend a man in such a state to leave the 
University for two or three days and go to a 
bracing air, to get a sea bath if possible, and take 
only as much exercise as he feels inclined for. The 
change, the rest, and a dose or two of some simple 
purgative, with an extra allowance of port wine, 
will generally restore him to his usual vigour. 
Some men pass through this stage of depression 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 



and recover without taking* any active measures, 
but if it does not pass off in a few days, and if the 
races are close at hand, it will be far better, for the 
sake of the boat, to follow the plan I have advised. 
If some think that I am recommending a too stimu- 
lating diet, they must remember that I do not 
intend my remarks to apply to other localities than 
the two Universities, though I would give the same 
advice under whatever circumstances this condition 
of the system might be produced, as personal 
observation and theoretical considerations combine 
to assure me of its propriety. 

It only remains for me to say a few words on 
medical treatment. Some might think it wisest to 
give a caution against self-doctoring, and where 
any serious injury is sustained by over-exertion, I 
would support such advice. We may refer the 
slightest forms of disturbance of the circulation, 
such as irregularity of the heart, palpitation, &c, 
which are felt by most persons after any kind of 
unusual exertion to the congestion and excitement 
which the heart has been subjected to, and this 
may be so distressing as to produce considerable 
alarm by preventing sleep, disturbing the brain, or 
giving rise to an uneasiness difficult to describe to 

D 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



those who have not experienced it. A hot bath, 
a good dose of antimony, from three to five grains of 
antimonial powder, or half a drachm of antimonial 
wine, with a grain or two of calomel, will soon relieve 
this condition. There are two other remedies, bro- 
mide of potassium and digitalis, of great value in 
reducing the excitement, but the latter remedy is 
not so efficient as the preparations of conium, hen- 
bane, and belladonna. I must go no farther than 
to advise the application of three or four leeches to 
the region of the heart, a remedy more efficacious 
than all medical remedies. Those serious diseases 
to which I have alluded require the most careful 
consideration of the medical attendant, and cannot 
be discussed in these pages. 

I would recommend most men who fall off in 
training to take some preparation of quinine and 
iron as a tonic till the system becomes accustomed 
to the exercise. Every man at the Universities has 
plenty of time to decide whether he ought to con- 
tinue training or not for the races, and I would insist 
strongly, if he has any doubt whatever in his own 
mind about it, either to give it up, or to take proper 
advice before he pledges himself to his boat. 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 51 

It is not at all improbable that the opponents 
of systematic exercise — that is to say, those who 
consider the slightest attention to the wants of the 
body as below the dignity of a reflecting mind — 
will find in what I have written much to employ in 
support of their views. If they will be good enough 
to restore the world to a state of primeval simplicity, 
and destroy all the bad influences engendered by 
high civilisation on the healthy natural development 
of the body, their sons will find in toil the proper 
source of exercise, and the word ' training/ which 
has been so often repeated in these remarks, with 
the far from agreeable ideas which the uninitiated 
associate with it, will no longer exist in our language 
as applied to the human species. Proud as parents 
may feel of mental superiority in their sons, it is 
well to remind them of the debt which they owe to 
the exercises of our Universities for that remarkably 
rapid development which a term or two of Oxford 
or Cambridge life produces in nearly all who enter 
them. 

It is difficult to estimate the influence derived 
from this important element in University education 
on the physical and moral character. Few persons 
realize its value in this respect, and far from dis- 

d 2 



52 EXERCISE AND TRAINING 

couraging rational indulgence in exercise, and 
particularly in rowing, it ought to be the desire of 
all who are interested in the welfare of any institu- 
tion for education to promote as far as possible the 
cultivation of the qualities developed by systematic 
exercise, as they are valuable agents in training 
men to habits of endurance and energy, and in 
preparing them to perform in after life the duties 
of active and useful members of society. 

That the sound mind requires a sound body for 
its shelter is a proverb older than the English 
language. That it is eminently difficult for a man 
suffering from bodily infirmity to be active and 
amiable is obvious. That bodily health, and, as a 
consequence, mental vigour, are promoted by 
judicious and wisely directed exercise, is beyond 
dispute. The reverse holds no less true that over- 
exertion or exercise at improper times, under ill- 
chosen circumstances, and carried to excess, injures 
the body and obstructs mental action. Surely, 
then, 'training' or prudent and systematic exercise 
of the body, with a view to keeping the mind clear 
and elastic, must be virtuous and good ; and it is 
in this persuasion that I have endeavoured in the 



THEIR EFFECTS UPON HEALTH 53 



foregoing pages to admonish against errors in 
training, and to recommend the true principles 
which should guide men in bringing about that 
fylissful condition of existence, the mens sana in 
corpore sano. 




/ 



55 



GENERAL SYSTEM EOR TRAINING, 
(i) To suit 5 o'clock hall : 

Rise at 7 a.m., earlier if awake. Sleep not to be dis- 
turbed. 

Tepid bath — i.e. between 6o° and 70 temp. — or a 
warm bath followed by a cold douche. 

Half a tumbler of warm milk-and-water and a slice of 
stale bread or toast. 

Exercise till 8.30 a.m. Walking briskly or running 
slowly. 

Breakfast. A mutton-chop, steak, or cold fowl, with 
one boiled egg ; stale bread or toast, butter, tea, sugar, 
and milk. 

Exercise from 12 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fives, racket, gym- 
nasium, or steady paddling. 

Lunch at 1.15 p.m. A small basin of mutton broth 
with barley, or cold rice pudding, and a glass of sherry or 
claret with water, or a small glass of beer, if preferred ; 
a glass of port wine if near the time of races. 

Exercise, 2.15 p.m. to 4 p.m., rowing. Slow steady 
stroke for first half-hour, varied afterwards, slow, steady, 
and continuous for the last half-mile or so. 

Cold bath immediately after rowing, dry and warm 
clothes, and a quiet walk. 



EXERCISE AND TRAINING 



Dinner, 5 p.m. Roast mutton or beef, steak, chop, or 
dry mutton-cutlets. Vinegar, tomato sauce, currant jelly, 
horse-radish, potatoes, and vegetables, all allowed. Rice 
pudding, stewed or roast apples. A small bottle of Bass 
or a pint of beer, or two glasses of sherry, port, or 
claret and water. A glass of port wine soon after dinner, 
and oranges occasionally. A cup of tea in the course of 
the evening allowed. 

9.30. p. m. A few minutes' dumb bells, tepid spong- 
ing of the whole body, good rub down, bed at 10 p.m. 

(2) If dinner is at 2 o'clock, the afternoon row should 
commence at 5. 

Supper the same as breakfast, at 8 o'clock. Half a pint 
of beer or tea. 

Thirst at other times in the day to be relieved by 
water. 



LONDON : PRINTED BY 
SFOTTISWOODK AND CO., NEW-STREET SOUARB 
AND PARLIAMENT STREET 



